3/15/12

a lenten fast (a little late).

so yesterday william, parker, and i were at the grocery store. i had this crazy idea pop in my head. "william! let's give up sugar for lent!!" (you're probably thinking right now, "uh bridge, lent began in february." i know, i know. i'm a little late to the game already thus I HAD BETTER NOT CHEAT.). he hesitated at first but then was all about it when i told him we'd be keeping each other accountable, competing (in a sense) in our attempt, and working towards a nice prize at the end. here's the thing: i grew up catholic, through and through. altar girl and all! and yet, i seriously can't remember a time where i ever gave up anything for lent. whaaa???? that's like heresy. so, here we are, already almost half way through before it occurred to me that i should give it a go. i guess you could say i'm easing in slooowly. nevertheless, we've got till easter, and william and i are on a SUGAR-FAST people. you might be thinking this shouldn't be a hard feat for a girl who posts crunchy recipes like granola and almond milk. but my friends... it is. yesterday i ate nearly three glazed donuts because i COULDN'T HELP MYSELF. and coke on ice? i mean, it doesn't happen often, but when it's around--and it is sometimes because jordan buys his own and puts it in the refrigerator since i refuse to buy it--i will steal! yes, i have succumbed to stealing (only like once or twice, guys, and i fess up!). i steal something i refuse to buy! what is that? it's so damn good too! like my eyes practically roll back in my head (once it hits your lips! it's so good! name the movie!) when i take the first sip. and ice cream?? i mean, don't even get me started. so, guys, it's on. from now till easter. no sugar. that includes juice, by the way. and if i cheat, i pay william $5 and if he cheats, he pays me $20 (haha, just kidding.). and then if neither of us cheats, i take him out to dinner at one of our fave restaurants. boom! we're doing this thang!

and pictured above are our snacks of choice. plus, not pictured, yogurt and granola, carrots, ya know, all that super exciting stuff. i mean, it's not as thrilling as cookies and donuts, no, but the lime chips with taboule salad is seriously pretty darn good. and i don't think it's good cause i'm just convincing myself it's good because it's good for me (you totally know what i mean).

if you're super serious about really giving up ALL sugar.. be careful cause it's in nearly EVERYTHING!! salad dressings, bbq sauce, ketchup.. when i started eating "paleo" that's one thing you're not supposed to have and it's so easy to eat it without even knowing!!!

Last year I was prego during lent so instead of giving something up I decided to do something extra. I set a goal to attend daily mass once a week. It was great! So this year I still shyed away from giving up food but I gave up facebook. It started just on my phone but then I decided to give up completly. Sounds lame but I now realize how much I got on...and I am doing the same as last year; attending daily mass.

I cherish the lenten season much more now than I ever have.

Good luck with no sugar!! I have a few family members who are doing the same.

I grew up Catholic as well, altar serve over here too! I'm still a practicing Catholic and this year I gave up all refined sugar (so basically all desserts, sweets, treats) and fast food (which I don't eat a ton of anyway, so this was lame on my part). I've been successfully eating clean so far! Good luck to you :)

I never had much of a sweet tooth until I started nursing....I wonder if that's where your big cravings are coming from! Regardless, giving up sugar is going to make you feel sooooo good. I need to do it myself. Good luck, B!

I gave up not going to church once a week...so now I actually have to go or the Catholic guilt will set in. Not sure how I'm feeling about it just yet but I'm trying to keep an open mind. So far the sermons at two different churches have been duds...here's hoping that church #3 is a keeper!

Bread! I'm now eating hummus with a spoon instead of warm pita and it's been tough but not as tough as the husband giving up his true love...PIZZA! One of his friends found out about the pizza-fast from my blog and now we get a picture of one in the mail box every. single. week. ha! Good luck with the sugar-fast!

Can I just say that you are the cutest, coolest and best step-mom ever? I think this little challenge between you and William is adoreable, and such a great way to encourage healthy eating! Which it sounds like you guys pretty much do anyway, but still! Happy Thursday :)

tv at home. trying to break the habit of turning it on in the morning and glancing at it as i walk by all day. totally unnecessary. but i've cheated in the sense that my bff is a stay at home mom and lives right down the street so she invites me over to watch her tv. but i get the bonus of baby snuggles and friendship.

Hold up. Are you doing no sugar like NO SUGAR (for example, some "healthy" cereals even have a little bit of white sugar in them) or no sugar as in no sweets/treats/desserts? I'm not even sure why I'm really asking... cause both would be hard for me to do. Just curious. I am a sugar addict, so this would be an interesting thing to try out, and one I would probably fail the moment I thought about eating something sweet.

I grew up in a protestant home & did the lent thing up through adolescence. I understand the practice, but think of it in a different way now. To borrow my husband's mantra: "I'm giving up guilt for Lent."